Children are at greater risk of maltreatment when families are under a lot of stress. Every family experiences challenges and stress, but some cope better than others. There are many reasons why families handle stress differently, but one has to do with protective factors. Numerous studies have shown that the presence of these protective factors can reduce the likelihood of abuse and neglect.

Strong Parents, Stable Children training materials are applicable for a variety of people with whom parents and children interact every day, and who are therefore in a good position to offer support and services, including:

Childcare Professionals

Educators/Social Service Professionals

Parents & Grandparents

Clergy/Faith-based Leaders

Business Professionals

Health Care Professionals

The training can be presented as an interactive 4-hour workshop in which all five protective factors are introduced, or it can also be adapted so that each protective factor is discussed individually.

Below you will find links to the training manual materials, which are organized by protective factor. Each section contains printouts of the training PowerPoint slides along with a variety of printable fact sheets and tools that can be used by individual families or in work with families. Links are also available below to view an actual training, divided in sections by protective factor, provided by Dr. David Schramm, Ph.D., who developed this curriculum as a professor at the University of Missouri-Columbia. In addition, you will find links to a bookmark and informational wheels that are distributed during trainings.

For additional information, please contact the Children’s Trust Fund at 573-751-5147 to learn about upcoming training dates, to schedule a training &/or to host a training.

Strong Parents, Stable Children: Building Protective Factors to Strengthen Families Training is supported by funding provided by the Missouri Department of Mental Health (DMH) Project LAUNCH, the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS), the Children’s Trust Fund (CTF) and the Community Based Child Abuse Prevention (CBCAP) Federal Grant from the Administration for Children and Families, Department of Health and Human Services. Content is based on the Strengthening Families framework, developed by the Center of the Study of Social Policy (CSSP). The framework is intended to help increase family strengths, enhance child development and reduce child abuse and neglect.

Strong Parents, Stable Children Training Toolkit:

Designed for professionals working with families

Download the Training Toolkit in sections or in its entirety using the tabs below.

Training Materials

Click on any of the following tabs to download our Strong Parents, Stable Children training PowerPoints.

Facilitator Guide

Click on the following tab for the Strong Parents, Stable Children 4-Hour Training Professionals and Parents Facilitator Guide.

Training Activities/Handout

Check back at a later time for training activities and handouts.

Strong Parent, Stable Children Training Videos:

Watch toolkit creator Dr. Dave Schramm present the Strong Parents, Stable Children training live. Dr. Schramm’s 4-hour presentation is available in its entirety via five (5) individual videos broken out by protective factor, which can easily be used and shared with parent groups followed by a facilitated discussion. The videos also serve as a valuable resource for trainer to learn and gain ideas on ways to present and deliver the curriculum.

Strong Parents, Stable Children Wheel:

Click on the graphics below for tips on building protective factors that strengthen families:

Early childhood is a critical period of brain development that provides the foundation for future mental health and wellness. The Missouri Department of Mental Health (DMH) wants to ensure that Missouri’s children grow up health and happy—both mentally and physically. This website is designed to provide parents, caregivers and practitioners who work with families, access to tools and resources to help children grow into emotionally healthy individuals. Visit the Healthy Kids website to learn about developmental milestones, activities by age, trauma, early brain development, the 5 Minute Miracle Campaign and more.

Publication:See the World Through My Eyes – FCS530 (English) or FCS732 (Spanish)

How to place an order for ‘See the World Through My Eyes:’

Visit the University of Arkansas – Division of Agriculture – Cooperative Extension Service